[bobkatak]

in reply to: Wife want divorce and family in shambles #1170270

Thanks to all for your comments and advice now a quick update.

My wife actually likes being hyperthyroid and tells me that all the time. Her mother died at 47 of a heart attack and my wife just turned 47 so the only thing that is driving her to get help is her racing heart. She doent have severe hyperthyroidism so she thinks everything is great especially her new attitude and weight loss. I say new but after talking with the kids we think she has had symptoms for well over a year.

Yesterday she had her first follow-up 22 days post RAI and her labs were more that twice what they have ever been and in the wrong direction. Her endo wanted to put her on PTU since she had a reaction to methamozole until her numbers go down but she decided she didnt want it she is going to stick with the beta blockers. Her dose was 27.5 mCi which I thought was rather high so I thought she would see quick results. Even the Endo was surprised at her lab results and had the lab recheck them. Anyway unless the thyroid is dumping a lot of hormone right now because a large part of it is dying I dont see a lot of improvement coming anytime soon.

TSH 0.01 range .34-5.6 (this hasnt change since her diagnosis)
FT4 4.08 range .61-1.12
FT3 9.89 range 2.50-3.90

Today after 4 and a half months of threats she moved out into an apartment, we have been getting along ok but her and her daughters still refuse to talk to each other and she told me she was leaving because she could not stand being around my oldest daughter that is currently living with us. When I told her she needed to make amends not run away from the problem she told me they will get over it in time its no big deal. Its amazing what this disease can do to someones attitude. Anyway she left taking only some of her clothes, a tv, and bathroom supplies its like she doesnt think about the consequences. We have a rather large house and she could have easily taken a lot more than she needed to furnish her apartment. One of the last things we talked about was she wanted to keep in touch on regular basis and go out for dinners but i am not sure I want that. I am ready for her to move on so we can start healing what is left of our family. if she ever comes around i will have a hard time trying to reconcile after the things she has said and done so I am ready to deal with this. I guess only time will tell hopefully the RAI does something for her not just for her but for our two daughters.

Anyway i just wanted to thank everyone for your support and providing me an opportunity to vent, this is an awesome website. I will continue to update if anything changes.

[bobkatak]

in reply to: Wife want divorce and family in shambles #1170263

katherinesc

Thankyou for your response it helps me understand how devestating this disease is and that there may be some hope even if very little.

She is 15 days post RAI today. This weekend her rage was back, I asked her how she was feeling and she said great thats why she quit taking the beta blocker, that explained why her rage was back. I did convince her she had to take them to protect her heart and I believe she has started again. She still will not talk to our daughters and their relationship is getting worse, my youngest was home from college this weekend and they didnt speak ten words to each other. A week or so ago she agreed to wait until mid Apr to move out and file for divorce but i know she already has an apartment and filled out the divorce paperwork so I expect to come home one day soon and her things will be gone and i will be served with divorce papers. I can only hope the RAI starts to kick in and her levels begin to come back into the normal range really soon or it may be too late.

It has been a long painful four months and i will not give up but at some point I have to move on. I have become very numb to her over the last four months and have done everything I can to support her so if she leaves now I know I did everything I could. She is very vindictive right now and does things just to make my daughter that lives us mad, very childish things. It just amazes me how this disease can turn a loving gentle woman into an angry mean person with no conscience.

Thanks to everyone for your comments and support and I will keep updating I just hope with some good news for a change.

[bobkatak]

in reply to: Wife want divorce and family in shambles #1170260

Sharilynk

Thank you so much for your response. My wife has said those things exactly. She just told me again tonight that she catered to me and the kids her whole life and nobody appreciates it, its time for her to do what she wants. I have been doing a lot of reading about RAI and I understand it can be a long road to recovery. i am willing to stick with her as long as she will let me.

We did talk tonight and she agreed not to do anything until her blood test come back normal. I am trying to repair the relationship between her and my daughters but she told me to stay out of it. i will probably back off until her levels come back closer to normal. Everyday since the RAI her hyper symptoms get worse although I think the beta blocker works well since I havent seen the rage I saw two months ago.

Again I really appreciate your comments and i am hanging on and supporting her as long as she will let me.

[bobkatak]

in reply to: Mom has hyperthyroidism- family is falling apart. #1170839

Johlego

I cant tell you how sorry I am for you and your family. My family is going through the exact same thing right now. We have been happily married for 23 years now and really got along great until the last 6 months. We have a lot in common and fish and camp all the time as a family. People refered to us as the brady bunch because we were so happy and luckily had a great family.

Looking back I believe the hyperthyroidism started about two years ago as i saw changes in her personnality but I just thought it was because we were getting older and our kids were grown. But now i also know she was complaining about a racing heart and knowing what I do now I know it was the start of hyperthyroidism.

Since nov my wife has been talking about a divorce and it was out of the blue, our relationship since then has steadily declined. What really made me realize there was something more wrong with her was when the relationship between her and out two daughters ages 21 and 22 also deteriorated, as of right now they dont even talk.

The beginning of Jan 12 she was diagnosed with hyperthyroidism and we have been battling it ever since. I have been very involved in her treatment and I know more about the disease than she cares to. it has worked to my advantage since she takes me to her doctor appointments which keeps me involved. The doctor will call and talk to me and she does take my advice on treatment. It has been extremely difficult since she was allergic to her meds and she just had radioactive iodine therapy on 20 Mar so it will be a while before I know if it is going to help.

My daughters and I count the days hours and minutes since her treatment and cant wait to see her return to the normal person we have known. I wish i could give you some good news and hopefully will in the near future. I know what you are going through and your family will be in my thoughts and prayers. i will keep my post updated as things change so maybe it will give you and other and idea of what to expect but you have to understand everyone is different and the outcomes may also be.

If you or father get involved in her treatment you will atleast know what is going on with her physically. The best to you and your family.

[bobkatak]

in reply to: Wife want divorce and family in shambles #1170257

Just a quick update, wife went through with the RAI, she was given 25 mci which i thought was kind of high but maybe not since her RAU was only slightly elevated at 30% and she cant take ATDs is why they went that high. I would rather they went on the high side vs the low side anyway. Hopefully it wont take three months for her symptoms to improve, I have read it can take one to three months and I dont think the family will survive three more months. I will continue to update as she hopefully improves. Thanks for listening.

[bobkatak]

in reply to: Wife want divorce and family in shambles #1170256

Thanks for the reply from all. My wifes endo discovered the low WBC at her scheduled appointment to see how the methimazole was working so he was watching her liver. Also he said he did not want to put her on PTU because that could be more damaging to her liver so her only options were RAI or surgery. I like the idea of RAI since it will be a more permanent cure and she wasnt always consistently taking her methimazole as it was. The endo seems pretty good and she has another appointment with him four weeks after the RAI so he is watching her pretty close and he has always checked FT3, FT4, and TSH. I have done a lot of research so he seems to talk to me more than her so she brings me along to interpret.

Her anger and rage symptoms are back, this morning my daughter and wife got into a huge argument and arent talking again but at least I see light at the end of the tunnel, only 5 more days until her RAI. I did try to find out what her dose was going to be but they didnt know yet, the endo said probably around 15mCi, I hope that is enough I cant imagine going through six more months of this waiting for another dose. She is back to saying there is nothing wrong with her and she feels great right now so I just hope she goes through with it.

She does not have any eye problems as of right now and hopefully wont. She 3wont have anything to do with this web sight or even researching what it is doing to her but I keep trying to talk to her every chance I get.

Thanks again for the responses and all the support, I will continue to keep updating.

[bobkatak]

in reply to: Wife want divorce and family in shambles #1170251

Just a quick update. Wife was in week four of being on Methimazole and really seemed to be changing. By the weekend she started to feel sick with flu like symptoms and they continually got worse. We assumed it had to be the flu since she was on meds for almost four weeks without any reaction. Monday 5 Mar she had a doctors appointment and they check her white blood cell count, it came back very low and she was immediately told to stop taking the methimazole because it was a severe reaction to the meds. Just my luck as things started to get better she would get uncommon side effects and have to stop taking them.

We had a long discussion that night and luckily she agreed to RAI and is scheduled for 20 Mar. Now that she is off the methimazole she is steadily going back to the angry mean person she was. This disease is very trying but hopefully the RAI will be a successful long term solution to this disease. What an unbelievable three to four months this has been and just when I think resolution is just around the corner we are thrown another curve ball.

Does anyone know how long after RAI her symptoms will improve? She is still on beta blockers and the doctor increased her dose so that helps some.

Hanging on tight but what a trying destructive disease. Thanks for letting me vent.

[bobkatak]

in reply to: Wife want divorce and family in shambles #1170250

Wow, thankyou for the link and info. One key thing I saw is that most diuretics are sulfa based, she is allergic to sulfa based meds and was complaining this moring she felt very sick. I did tell her she has to stop and she said she hasnt taken them in a month but I know that is not true. The sulfa will make her rethink taking them, she gets very sick on sulfa.

[bobkatak]

in reply to: Wife want divorce and family in shambles #1170248

Snelsen,

She does not get the support from her endo, he just tells me that happens with hyperthyroidism but wont tell her anything. She is on ATD’s and a beta blocker she refuses to get RAI. I have printed a lot of things for her to read and bought her a book about it but she refuses to read them. She continually says there is nothing wrong with her its me that has the problem she feels good. Finally I think the ATD’s are starting to have an effect, she went to dinner with one daughter to try and rectify things and has been trying to talk to my other daughter today. Dont get me wrong she has a long way to go but I have some hope she is improving.

She did say something about going to a counselor yesterday but she said only because my daughter told her she needed to. But she also said she hasnt changed her mind about me and still wants a divorce but I plan on sticking it through as long as she will let me.

I am afraid she will stop taking the ATD because she is starting to gain weight and is taking pills to get rid of water weight, she is all about her looks right now.I am just keeping my fingers crossed and do what i can to keep her moving in the right direction. She has blood tests monday I really hope the endo knows what he is doing and doesnt reduce her meds to the point she stops the recovery. Everyday is really tough for the whole family so we get excited over any improvement. I wouldnt wish this on my worste enemy and it has been going on for three and half months now but she has only been on meds 23 days now.

Thanks for the input, sorry I am rambling but it may be helpful for other families that are going through the same thing to an idea what they can expect, plus it helps me to vent.

[bobkatak]

in reply to: Wife want divorce and family in shambles #1170244

Thanks

I have been getting copies of all her tests I just hope she still lets me go with her. A lot of her symptoms are getting better but I dont know if its the beta blocker or ATD. I guess I am hoping I wake up one morning and she turned back into the loving caring woman I have known for the past 23 years. She still thinks there is nothing wrong with her, she is fine with her new attitude and outlook on life. She is all about her looks and being the center of attention, she dresses and acts like she is a teenager again. She hardly talks to me and hasnt talked to her daughter since the beginning of Dec. When I ask her to fix her relationship with her daughter she refuses and will say they need to make the effort if not its their loss. That is the part I am hoping the medication fixes soon so we can work together as a family on fighting her disease.

It has been a long 3 months dealing with this but I am with her until the end or until she wont let me be here anymore. Is there anyone else that has experienced the same type of emotions and did it correct its self or is it far fetched to think this is driven by her hyperthyroid.

Thanks again for the support.

[bobkatak]

in reply to: Wife want divorce and family in shambles #1170245

Thanks for the comment Kimberly, here’s an update.

She had an iodine uptake scan and it came back a little high, I expected it to be a lot higher based on her attitude and actions. We finally had an appointment with her endocronologist on 7 Feb and he prescribed 20mg Propanol taken twice daily and 5mg methimazole taken three times daily. The beta blocker seems to have controled her rage and anger but her attitude towards me and the kids has not changed. the last two days she seems to be communicating a little more but today is day 17 of being on meds and the change in her attitude I had hoped for does not seem to be happening or at least not very fast. The last two days she seemed to be getting a little better but this morning she seemed to be her same distant self. How long does it take for the methimazole to start working and does anyone know if 15mg a day is enough. Her next appointment for blood tests is 5 Mar but that seems like a long way off considering what it is doing to our family. Any advice would be extremely appreciated.

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